Alligators -- A healthy fear is a good thing
- jjvanm
- Aug 2
- 3 min read
Published in the McAllen Monitor, August 2, 2025
Story and photos by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist
Alligators are fascinating – until you find one hovering off the corner of your fishing dock, then they seem prehistoric and scary. And it is a good time to observe from a distance and do some research.
American alligator has the scientific name, Alligator mississippiensis. As for prehistoric, they are ancient reptiles that share a common ancestor with dinosaurs. Alligators are part of the order Crocodilia, which emerged around 200 million years ago, during the time of the dinosaurs.
As for scary, they are not an animal with which to cultivate any sort of rapport other than a healthy respect. Males can reach between 10 and 15 feet long and weigh 500 pounds or more. Females are slightly smaller. There are no external differences between sexes.
Alligators can live up to 50 years in the wild. They are fast. They can attain speeds of 20 miles per hour in the water and up to 35 miles per hour on land. They have four short legs; the front legs have five toes; the back legs have four webbed toes which help with speed in the water. Half of an alligator’s body is tail; long, flattened and powerful, it helps propel them through the water.
A reptile, alligators are dark-skinned and covered in small, bony scales called scutes. Their snouts are round and wide. Their eyes are positioned on the sides of their head, high on the skull, giving them a wide field of vision and allowing them to stalk prey while most of their body is submerged. Their eyes glow red when light hits them at night.
Studies suggest that alligators haven’t undergone significant evolutionary changes in their body plan for at least eight million years, according to an article at futurity.org, a research university news source. "That lack of change may be because alligators are well-adapted to their semi-aquatic, ambush predator niche."
I have accused our resaca alligator of lurking. Alligators will bask in the sun with only their eyes and nostrils above water. They cannot breathe underwater. They can hold their breath for 10 to 15 minutes but need to surface for air. That lurking position also is a hunting mode.
Adult alligators are apex predators and opportunistic ambush predators. They have a diverse diet that includes large fish, turtles, birds, small mammals like raccoons, snakes, deer and even smaller alligators. They will eat carrion and domestic animals, like goats or pigs, pet dogs and cats; basically, whatever is available and easily accessible that they can catch and overpower.
An apex predator is a predator at the top of a food chain, without natural predators of its own.
Alligators hunt from dusk until dawn. They don’t have to eat every day. In summer, they may eat once or twice a week. They use their sharp teeth to capture prey; their jaw strength has been measured at 2,000 pounds per square inch.
Alligators play a vital role in their ecosystems, helping to regulate populations of other animals and preventing any single species from becoming overabundant.
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